In 1992, the Federal government gave local television stations the unilateral decision to grant or deny permission for carriage of their television signal by cable and satellite providers. 

This means Broadcasters currently have the option of requiring cable and satellite providers to pay to carry their stations, despite the fact that their signals are being sent over the air, using free spectrum granted to them by the Federal government.  Unfortunately, the option to charge these fees became such a lucrative revenue stream to many broadcasters that they’ve continued to take advantage of it, regardless of the cost to consumers.    

Madison does absorb some of these fees, however, we have no choice but to pass some of these fees called Broadcast Surcharges on to the customer, increasing their overall monthly charges.